EUs science flagship projects

I don't think there has been a thread on this, it was decided back in January.
Anyways, what do you think about winning applications? What would you like to see in the future?

My only exposure to any of them was when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov got the Nobel Prize in Physics back in 2010, all I really remember from that is that Andre Geim seemed like a pretty funny dude, his speech during the Nobel Banquet made me smile.

At the core of science funding of the Eurpean commission is the financial support for collaborative research projects. More than 4000 such projects were started in FP7 over the last seven years. Typically, these projects receive funding up to several million EUR. This is very different for the Graphene and Human Brain flagship projects of the European Commission. Both projects could obtain up to a billion EUR in support, the Commission funds both projects initially with a 54 million EUR startup budget, both projects will then be supported from the Horizon 2020 budget, as well as from other public and industry sources.

Both projects are huge international consortia. The Graphene project, coordinated by Jari Kinaret from Chalmers in Gothenburg, comprises 176 different research groups from 17 European countries. The Human Brain project is headed by Henry Markram from EPFL in Laussane and comprises 87 organisations in 16 European countries. The structure of the consortia is flexible and additional partners may be appointed after the start of the programmes, presumably towards the end of 2013. More specifically, 20% of their resources will be devoted to an open call for new partners to join the consortia. Peter will have more on the structure of these consortia in a separate blogpost.

21 Consortia submitted their applications to this call, of which six were shortlisted for further analysis. Graphene and the Human Brain Project were selected as the two best proposals. According to the Commission a jury of 25 experts decided, following a range of criteria:

“They (the jury) looked at which of the Flagships offer the best scientific and technological excellence, as well as sound implementation plans, and which would create the greatest value for Europe in terms of impact on science, technology, society and economy.”

So, what are these projects about then? Graphene is a translational project, aiming at establishing industrial applications for this mono layered carbon material (see image). The Human Brain Project has a very challenging goal: “Using a unique simulation-based approach, HBP aims to provide researchers worldwide with a tool to understand how the brain really works.” The consortium hopes for new application in neuroscience, medicine and computing.

The nerve is called the "nerve of awareness". You cant dissect it. Its a current that runs up the center of your spine. I dont know if any of you have sat down, crossed your legs, smoked DMT, and watch what happens... but what happens to me is this big thing goes RRRRRRRRRAAAAAWWW! up my spine and flashes in my brain... well apparently thats whats going to happen if I do this stuff...

I do like the way the EU selects their projects. Another good one is the Galileo project - a superior alternative to GPS that is for civilian applications and never meant to be switched off.

One I do not think was such a good choice for funding is the ITER, a centralized fusion for energy generation project. That, I think has the most potential to be a huge waste of money in the long run due to so many alternatives, even within fusion research.

What I would love to see is funding for Molten Salt Reactors, like the Liquid Fluoride Thorium reactor (http://www.thoriumsingapore.com/cont...d=50&Itemid=37). These are fission reactors that can be designed to be passively inherently safe and orders of magnitude more efficient in both electricity generation and waste production. It would be possible to get commercial-ready results in far less time than ITER since fully functional prototypes were made as far back as in the 1960's amazingly. Also, China is plowing large funds into this research.

There was a BBC Horizons episode just recently that had a look at Graphene...super tough and highly conductive, and the best way to get it just now is from pencil lead and sellotape.
They apparently get the pencil lead(shaving) stuck to the tape and then repeatedly fold the tape onto the pencil lead and peal it apart resulting in thinner and thinner layers all the way down to graphene

There was a BBC Horizons episode just recently that had a look at Graphene...super tough and highly conductive, and the best way to get it just now is from pencil lead and sellotape.
They apparently get the pencil lead(shaving) stuck to the tape and then repeatedly fold the tape onto the pencil lead and peal it apart resulting in thinner and thinner layers all the way down to graphene

Cool, do you got a link to the episode mate? Would love to see it!

Originally Posted by Cybran

The EU is a pyramid scheme. They won't manage to fund any decent projects.

There is a lot of issues with the EU Cybran but this really isn't one of them imo.

The nerve is called the "nerve of awareness". You cant dissect it. Its a current that runs up the center of your spine. I dont know if any of you have sat down, crossed your legs, smoked DMT, and watch what happens... but what happens to me is this big thing goes RRRRRRRRRAAAAAWWW! up my spine and flashes in my brain... well apparently thats whats going to happen if I do this stuff...

The EU is a pyramid scheme. They won't manage to fund any decent projects.

Coming from a country that takes more than three times from EU funds than it pays.

The EU will and does fund a huge number of scientific and educational projects. One of the reasons why Europe is a leader in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy is because of EU programs, for instance.

Yes, Graphene is quite a promising material. On the university I'm working on, one of two really big and well funded projects. The other is quantum optics, most of the research done in quantum entanglement. But "well funded" in science is usually: You got just enough money to at least do something.

There was a BBC Horizons episode just recently that had a look at Graphene...super tough and highly conductive, and the best way to get it just now is from pencil lead and sellotape.

That's a way to get it, but not the best. The best I've heard of thus far is using a liquid graphite suspension on a CD in a lightscribe drive.

'Twas a cutlass swipe or an ounce of lead
Or a yawing hole in a battered head
And the scuppers clogged with rotting red
And there they lay I damn me eyes
All lookouts clapped on Paradise
All souls bound just contrarywise, yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!

Coming from a country that takes more than three times from EU funds than it pays.

The EU will and does fund a huge number of scientific and educational projects. One of the reasons why Europe is a leader in Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy is because of EU programs, for instance.

What I would love to see is funding for Molten Salt Reactors, like the Liquid Fluoride Thorium reactor (http://www.thoriumsingapore.com/cont...d=50&Itemid=37). These are fission reactors that can be designed to be passively inherently safe and orders of magnitude more efficient in both electricity generation and waste production. It would be possible to get commercial-ready results in far less time than ITER since fully functional prototypes were made as far back as in the 1960's amazingly. Also, China is plowing large funds into this research.

The only reason thorium reactors were never realized is because you couldn't use them to make nuclear weapons. Sure, thorium reactors are safer... but ever since WWII all the governments only thought about was creating nukes.

The PMI and research output are not parallel. PMI usually relfects industrial output that has little to do with R&D, as pure R&D is high in costs but has little immediate effect on the industrial output. And services have zero to do with R&D.

We are talking about pure science that has no short term industrial application whatsoever.

I know you are a ranging Europhobe but you are using strawman arguements here.

Better distribution of existing limited funds to improve output is nothing to dismiss.

I would really love to know where your raging hate against the EU or generally every European country or European in general is coming from? Did the entire continent as a whole killed your dog or what?

Last edited by Mihalik; 2013-04-23 at 05:31 PM.

Originally Posted by Orlong

It doesnt destroy the land to bury styrofoam 25 feet below the ground

Today Obama once again kneeled at the altar of environmental naziism and hurt this once great country. He has now banned all drilling in the Atlantic Ocean

The PMI and research output are not parallel. PMI usually relfects industrial output that has little to do with R&D, as pure R&D is high in costs but has little immediate effect on the industrial output. And services have zero to do with R&D.

We are talking about pure science that has no short term industrial application whatsoever.

I know you are a ranging Europhobe but you are using strawman arguements here.

Better distribution of existing limited funds to improve output is nothing to dismiss.

I would really love to know where your raging hate against the EU or generally every European country or European in general is coming from? Did the entire continent as a whole killed your dog or what?

They wanna take away his freedom, duh. I think it's just pent up jealousy from Australia doing very little/nothing in recent science.

I'm really happy that one aspect of the EU which is kind of perfect is science and research, and that's kind of what I love and want to be and do.

I just read in the newspapers today that a complex (super-green and super-glassy) is going to be built in the city (Zagreb) with 8 colleges, a dorm for 5000 students and apartments (and everything the residents might need) for 20 000 people. The entire complex is going to be powered by solar energy and CO2 consuming algae will be used to purify the area in the campus itself as well as generally making the city cleaner. Besides that the campus will be the base for a few research institutes where, among other things, a few dozen projects on clean energy are going to be conducted.

Now, the thing is, it will cost 500 mil € (which means probably more like a billion by the time they start building it 'cause these things always end up costing more) and it will be fully funded by the EU. The reason is because the EU always funds clean-energy and science research projects.

i applaud the eu. just wish america would be more on board the graphene train as well. sure, universities and such are pioneering ahead with it, but washington can be doing a lot more. i truly believe the next age is the graphene age. i wanna live long enough to fully experience it.